If you haven’t been following my blog posts, you need to go here and here because of the cool Gender Reveal Party I’m hosted in-person and online. Which leads me to this post about baby registries.
As a soon-to-be second-time Mom, I am pretty sure I’m not getting a shower this time around as very few of us have baby showers like we did for our first baby. Especially if you are having the same gender or they are close in age. For some reason, many feel you must be an expert and have everything covered, or that you really don’t care that you are having a second baby and thus, don’t want to celebrate your huge belly again.
It makes me sad on some levels that the excitement is often not given for subsequent children. Aren’t they just as special? Others claim having a shower for a second child is in bad taste – that you are just looking for someone to throw you a party so you can get more gifts. My response to that is – don’t we have birthday parties for the same reason? But it is a valid response.
Depending on your family, culture and life situation, which varies for all of us, I think, however, there is a way to approach second-time showers – otherwise known as sprinkles (get it?) – that can take the focus of gift groveling and put it on celebrating your cutie, if you so choose to go that route. Such as:
- Clearly stating in the Invitation you don’t want gifts.
- Knowing that some will feel awkward showing up empty-handed, ask for diapers in lieu of gifts. Perhaps ask your guest to just bring a new book for the new baby, with an inspirational saying written by the gifter on the inside.
- If you don’t know the sex of the baby, have them guess by bringing something pink or blue. Then when the baby arrives, keep either the pink or blue items, depending on the gender, and donate the other to charity.
However, depending on your personal circumstances, it may be helpful to create a baby registry for your second bundle of joy. Just keep the total number of items on the registry small and inexpensive. Some ideas are:
- Must-have nursery items like new onesies, pacifiers, bottles or sheets since the previous sets have seen many-a-blowout from baby number one.
- Include other items that you need to duplicate, like getting another sound machine or diaper pail since your first is still using those items.
- You could put a large item on the registry, like a double stroller, but large ticket items like these should only be one or two items in your entire registry.
- For other ideas for your registry for baby number two, follow my Pinterest Boards here.
Whether you have a shower/sprinkle for your second (or subsequent) children or not, still enjoy your pregnancy. Find other ways to celebrate like hosting a Meet the Baby party after your little one is born or a Gender Reveal Party. And even if you don’t have any of these things, you will be getting the best celebration and gift of them all – a new member of your family.
I think the 2nd should be celebrated in some way. A shower to me is less about gifts (although they are super helpful) but more about welcoming this new being into your community and the world. And the 2nd (or 3rd, or etc) should be just as welcomed! Even if it’s tea or a lunch, I think that some fuss should be made. – Emily